Challenge- Tears
by Shadow of the Lonesome Jay
Summary: This is a story about a kit dying. If you don't at least feel bad, you don't have a heart.
1. Chapter 1

**I apologise in advance if you cannot read something or it makes no sense. I am typing on my tablet, and I sometimes have typos or autocorrect interferes.**

 _ **Challengr-**_ _Tears_

 _ **Word count minimum-**_ _?_

 _ **Description-**_ _This is about a kit dying. Hope you all cry, and I hope I do too!_

Briarfrost watched as her two kittens, Ivykit and Harekit, tussled outside of the nursery. She smiled and purred, prickinher ears over to the medicine den, where her mate, Sun heart, was staying until he recovered from his leaf-bare illness.

"Kits, you stay here," she called to them, padding over to the medicine den, which was flooded with the scents of sickness.

"Hello? Anyone here?"

Doegaze met her at the entrance to the seen, a tired expression on her face.

"Doegaze, is everything alright?" The queen asked nervously, her tail-tip twitching anxiously.

"Squirrelleap got the same sickness earlier today," Doegaze mewed. "I don't want you to risk giving it to the kits."

"What about Sunheart? Is he alright?" Briarfrost swallowed as a flash of worry flashed across the medicine cat's face, so quickly she thought she might have imagined it.

"Y-yes, he's fine..." Doegaze murmured, obviously lying.

Briarfrost letmout a wail of grief. "H-he isn't going to live, is he...?" Tears were already forming in her eyes at the thought.

Doegaze shook her head sadly.

Briarfrost sniffed, already accepting her fate.

* * *

Briarfrost sniffed as her mate's body was brought to the center of camp, limo and lifeless. Tear swelled in her eyes and dripped down like fat raindrops onto the earth as she padded over to his, her movements sluggish and slow.

She laid down at Sunheart's side, grooming his golden fur for the very last time as Doegaze rubbed mint and lavender on his sickness a covered fur.

Harekit padded over to his mother, Ivykit at his side. "Mama, why is daddy sleeping?" He asked as his pale-furred sister climbed onto her shoulders.

"And why isn't he waking up?" She added, crawling up to and whispering in his ear.

Briarfrost swatted Ivykit off of Sunheart, sobbing into her mate's fur. _I'm sorry, Ivykit._ She thought silently. _No. You can't love them. They will be snatched away from you just like he was._

She buried her face in Sunheart's fur and continued to cry, ignoring her kits' attempts to understand and make her feel better.

* * *

Harekit whimpered and licked Briarfrost's ear. "Mama, why don't you pway wif us anymore?" He asked. "I miss you..."

Ivykit shook her head. "Harekit, remember? Daddy went on that big journey to find the stars! Mama probably wishes he was here with us!"

Briarfrost padded out of the nursery suddenly, padding over to the leader's den. The kits heard a shocked yowl coming from it, but didn't hear much else.

After what seemed like moons, Briarfrost finally emerged from the den, Holly star behind her.

"Let all cats gather to hear my words!" The long-furred leader yowled, a bit of hesitation in her voice.

Harekit and Ivykit padded to the front of the gathered cats, blinking in confusion. Were they getting their names early.

"What goin' on?" The little brown tom-kit asaasaked, looking at his sister, who shrugged.

"Maybe mama figured out a sway to get Daddy back!" She grinned, pouncing on her brother, who frowned.

As the clan emerged from their dens, Holly star cleared her throat. "I have sad news, especially for the kits of this clan," she announced, looking to Harekit and Ivykit. "Briarfrost had decided to go back to her duties as a warrior, le-"

The clan gasped, looking to the queen, who had weariness and grief mixed into her eyes.

"Leaving her kits to Dawnmist," Hollystar finished, dismissing the clan to continue murmuring amongst themselves.

Harepaw gaped his jaws, looking to his mother. "But mommy! We want to be with you!" He ewxclaimed, pawing at her.

"You are not my kits," Briarfrost mewed coldly, her voice cracked.

Ivykit bounced in front of her. "Oh, c'mon! You can't leave us!"

The mother padded out of camp, leaving kits whimpering after her, confused and scared.

* * *

Harekit began coughing, heat radiating from his pelt. His eyes streamed.

Ivykit woke up beside him, in the curve of Dawnmist's belly. "You okay?" She asked, yawning.

Harekit nodded. "Yeah, just a little cough," he replied, thinking of how his father had been before he left them.

"I don't know why mama left us. I mean, she was so nice, but now she is never there anymore."

"Maybe she's sick," Ivykit suggested with a shrug.

Harekit nodded quietly, but didn't believe her. His mother just hated them now, but Ivykit didn't see it. He coughed again, his body racking with effort.

His mother seemed especially mean and cold now. The little brown tom didn't understand. He wanted his mom, but she didn't want him. All she did was sit around and murmur to herself inaudibly.

Harekit thought of his mother, tears streaming from his eyes. Why was she being so mean all of the sudden?

He padded away from his foster mother, who was heavy with kits of her own, and padded over to his mother.

"Mama?" Harekit asked to the silent limp of fur in the center of camp.

He climbed onto her back like he used to, just to be thrown off by a paw. He whimpered as he hit the ground, scarlet dropping from his cheek. "M-mommy...?" He asked, tears in his eyes. "Why are you acting so weird?"

Briarfrost hissed and ran away from camp, tears running from her eyes. She couldn't get attached to them! She just couldn't!

Harekit stared after her blankly, confusion, fear, and sadness flooding his eyes. "Mama..." He whispered, his voice barely a whisper.

* * *

Harekit laid in the medicine den, wheezing and coughing. Hisnears were flattened to his head as someone rushed around him, stuffing thinks into his jaws. He didn't protest- being too weak to do so.

He closed his eyes, trying to ignore the things around him.

After what seemed like moons, Harekit heard a sound that sounded like a wail and a large brown figure stood over him, as well as a smaller, lighter colored one, about his size.

"Harekit!" Briarfrost wailed as she saw her weak son. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" Tears streamed from her eyes as she watched him. The she-cat curled around him, licking his fur to reassure him. "Please forgive me..." She rested her head on his tiny body, listening to his dwindling heartbeat.

"Mom...?" Ivykit asked. "What's wrong with brother? Why is he acting like Daddy did?"

Briarfrost scooped in her innocent daughter, tears flooding her eyes. She couldn't find any words, so she laid there.

"I love you..." Harekit croaked quietly, before closing his eyes and taking his final breath.

 **If this didn't make you feel bad, there is something wrong with you. His mother was cruel to him, hardened by grief, and he doesn't understand. In the end, he forgives her, despite abandoning him and his sister from her grief.**


	2. AN

So, I was really back through this .I cannot edit my last chapter, so I'm putting this here: **D*mn, that was written so badly. I didn't proofread anything, and I rushed through it. I don't know if I was lazy, multitasking, or whatever else, but that was just... Gah, everything about that was horrible. I apologize to everyone trying to give me constuctive criticism- I imagine you were trying not to yell at me about just how awful that was, haha.**

 **Honestly, I might rewrite this one day if I get bored and have some free time.**

 **I'm laughing at just how bad this is, honestly.**

 _For any typos in this, my vision is sh*t, and I'm too lazy to zoom in to find and correct any mistakes._


End file.
